I fear I have sad news. Our friend Ruud Dingemans has passed away on june 18th 2013.

Some of you might know that he was suffering from a brain tumor and that things weren't looking good. Indeed they were not.

Rudy was a prominent member of our little community who truly loved Grand Prix Legends and everything about it, not in the least the community itself. Always the pleasant and helpful character, he will be missed.

Ruud Dingemans, editor of the first hour at MacFan is Monday at the age of 48 deceased from the effects of a lingering illness. As a result of his illness, he had already his contributions to MacFan.nl specify and also writing articles did not work anymore. The most successful series on Apple Macintosh models MacFan currently publishes Ruud completed within sight of its final deadline.
MacFans first editor Alfred Konijnenbelt remember Ruud with the following words:
Ruud Dingemans was, perhaps only within the group of freelance employees MacFan, a true nerd. Technology was his passion and his life, he knew the specifications of almost every Mac out of his head, down to the smallest detail. By day he slept mostly in the evening and at night were his productive hours.

Since the website MacFan in 1998 was in the air, kept Ruud daily news. So he also scored firsts especially in the night hours, as colleagues on one ear layers. Most items had an input time of around 6:00 pm, when he had finished. His daily search for relevant news
Because nerd or not, Ruud was above all a journalist. With its mores of a reporter: Facts are facts, and news is only suitable for publication if it is checked by a second source. The phenomenon of 'rumor', that many other Apple-oriented sites furore, was a total abomination him. Partly because of that unshakable arrangement grew into a site MacFan.nl may not always be sexy, but thoroughly reliable news about Apple, Mac and surroundings.
The articles he wrote for MacFan were always elaborate and full of well-researched facts. Ruud had a slight tendency towards the past, when Apple was not so mainstream. Also because he likes with computers and surrounded by no broad stock market had, second-or third-hand Macs are simply a lot cheaper than the latest models. Usually he was only held during a test. For MacFan he placed a lot of facts in historical perspective.
Proudly he was on the mail contact that he maintained some time with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. Woz, as he amicably called him, was a welcome source of information, especially since Steve Jobs childhood friend was not afraid to share. Transverse an opinion or an unconventional insight
One of the other highlights of Ruuds life was also undoubtedly weeklong Japan. That he had, like everything he did, prepared to perfection. A year in advance, maybe already longer, he was Japanese embarked on a course to also be able to talk with others. Than university-educated people The itinerary was also long been predetermined. And of course he could not resist to send, even though that was not really fresh news more. A report from the Apple Store in Tokyo the world Who Ruud not so well known was the trip to the East might be a surprise, because he got no further as often outside his Brabant village in the shadow of the Efteling.
An incurable brain tumor was too early to end the life of Ruud Dingemans.

So Alfred Konijnenbelt.
Journalist Ruud Dingemans earned his degree in 1992 at the Academy of Journalism in Tilburg. He arrived in technology journalism waterway through Start, the magazine of the Atari ST. Later he worked on the Amiga Magazine and then publishing Divo MacFan founded in 1995 Ruud was also at.
In addition to background articles Ruud kept long time advice to readers who knocked problems with Apple hardware and software at MacFan. Colleagues were always a helpful suggestion visit this leader in service.